Durable, glossy fascia associated with articles such as automobiles, luggage, appliances, and other durable articles made from plastics increase both the aesthetic appeal and the utility of these articles. However, due to the physical characteristics of many plastics such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polycarbonate, polystyrene, etc., it is often difficult if not impossible to color these external surfaces with traditional paints and by common painting techniques. Moreover, even when such surfaces are paintable, the paints themselves present an environmental problem. The use of paint on plastic articles increases the presence of volatile organic compounds (“VOC's”) in the atmosphere, water and ground. Also, the presence of paint reduces the recyclability of the articles, as the paint must by stripped using harsh solvents prior to recycling. Thus, there is considerable interest in developing new, paint-free protective and decorative fascia for use on such articles.
Ionomer materials are known in the art, and are known to be useful in plastic films and for coating various plastic substrates. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,482,766, 4,148,972, 5,543,233, 4,800,130, 4,656,098, 5,206,294, 4,335,175; DE 36 26 809 A; EP 0 721 856; and JP 08269409, 2000085062, and 04052136. Ionomer coatings are useful for their scratch and abrasion resistance, as well as toughness and aesthetic appeal. A continued problem in the use of ionomers is bonding the ionomer sheet or layer to a substrate layer. This is particularly true where the substrate is pre-formed and the ionomer must then be secured onto the substrate, which is most often the case in current processes. For example, when the substrate is an automobile bumper made from such materials as polypropylene or ethylene-propylene copolymer, the substrate material is typically injection molded to form the solid bumper in a first step. In order to then color this bumper, it must either be painted with traditional automotive paints, or some material must otherwise be secured onto the bumper after it is formed, making it impractical to secure multi-layered materials such as, for example, laminated ionomer or ionomer layers, onto the bumper.
What is needed is an article that is aesthetically desirable yet needs no painting, and a method of attaching a pre-pigmented material such as an ionomer to a substrate, wherein the ionomer comprises one or more layers that is pre-formed to the shape of the desired end use article that allows the substrate to then be secured to the shaped ionomer material.